Ty sighed and rubbed his cheek before getting out of his chair and rounding the table. “I’m sorry, Annalise. I’ve never done this before either and I guess I’m making a mess of things. I never expected to ride into town tonight and find the girl I want to make my bride,” he said, sinking to one knee and taking her hand in his. “Then when you indicated you liked kissing, I got a little jealous and to answer your question honestly, no, all men do not kiss alike. I expect it has something to do with the feelings they have for the girl they’re kissing and she for them.”
Annalise thought this over. It made sense and it was hard to imagine a kiss being any better than the one they’d just shared.
“What about the other thing you said, about what you would do if I kissed another man?” she demanded, determined to ferret out the true measure of his character before she agreed to anything.
“Well, I’m sorry for saying that too, at least in that way. I can’t imagine you doing anything bad enough to earn a spanking, what with you being so sweet and all, but it’s best you know beforehand that it’s a possibility, especially if I found out you kissed another man,” he said firmly, looking straight into her startled eyes.
“You would really strike me?” she whispered.
“I sure would, right on your cute little behind with my hand,” he said holding up his very large hand so she could get the full implication of what he was saying. “I’d spank your bottom until you were good and sorry for doing something you ought not do.”
“What if I hated it?” she asked, tilting her head. There was a curious swirling in her tummy and a clenching she’d never experienced.
“Why, that would be a good thing,” Ty smiled as he fingered a section of her hair. “Then I wouldn’t have to do it very often at all.”
“I suppose that’s true, but I’m not at all sure I should accept your proposal. After all, we only met tonight.”
Ty was not at all in favor of waiting so he did the only thing he could think of, he stood and pulled her into his arms. Her head naturally tipped up so she could look at him and his lips settled over hers once again, stealing her breath and her wits. He held her firmly yet gently as his hand traveled up and down her back from her shoulders to the base of her spine.
She felt his fingers tangle in her hair as he tightened his grip, pressing her breasts against his chest. Her feet left the floor as he straightened to his full height and one of his large hands strayed to her hips, molding her pliant form tightly to his. A tug on her hair, and she was offering her neck to his mouth, shivering with needs she couldn’t name. It was glorious.
“Marry me, be my bride,” he pleaded in her ear, nipping on her tiny lobe.
Annalise sighed in delight, but gave no answer until he smacked her bottom and growled the question again. “Answer me,” he demanded. “I want an answer!”
“Yes, Ty, yes,” she sighed, feathering kisses along his jaw. “I will marry you.”
His whoop of joy was so loud the girls came running, falling through the doorway just in time to see Ty twirl her around before setting her on her feet with a pat on her bottom.
“What’s going on in here?” Callie Mae demanded.
“I think I just got engaged,” Annalise giggled, holding Ty’s hand between her own.
“What?”
“Don’t worry, Callie Mae; I’ll stay until I work off what you’ve invested in me. I promise.”
“No,” Ty insisted. “I’ll pay whatever she owes you, Callie Mae, and I’ll find her a room in town until we can make the arrangements.”
“You’ll do no such thing,” Annalise informed him. “I have an obligation and I won’t shirk it. I will continue to work here until it’s fulfilled.”
“Okay, but why do you have to live here?”
“This is my family, Ty. The only one I have. Don’t act like they aren’t good enough or this engagement will be over before it’s begun,” Annalise warned.
Staring into her eyes, he couldn’t see the shocked expressions on the other girl’s faces. The little brown sparrow had morphed into an eagle.
“All right, all right, I meant no offense. Callie Mae, tell her we’ve been friends for a long time. I meant no disrespect, ladies. Boy, I can see I’m going to have to be careful how I word things,” he said wryly, shaking his head. “She’s a might feistier than I thought. Give me a kiss, honey, and I’ll see you soon.”
Annalise stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek before he went out the door.
Immediately she was swarmed by her friends, demanding to know how she’d managed to snag one of the most eligible men in the territory the first time she ventured out on her own.
Annalise didn’t have any answers. “I really don’t know how it happened. One moment I was nearly run down in the street and the next I was saying yes to Ty’s proposal. It all seems like an incredible dream. Funny, I always thought I’d end up a spinster, minding someone else’s children. Quick, pinch me, Fancy, so I’ll know I’m awake.”
“I’ll pinch you,” Fancy replied smiling, “but I know you’re awake, maybe for the first time since I’ve known you,” she laughed, giving Annalise a hard pinch.
“Ouch!”
